1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a signal input device to be mounted in, for example, a vehicle, and more particularly, to a so-called joystick type signal input device in which a desired signal can be input from a movable operating section.
The present invention also relates to a car-mounted input device in which various electronic devices mounted in a car are centrally operated by a single manual operating section, and more particularly, to a means for causing an operator to tactually know whether the operation by the manual operating section is proper or improper.
2. Description of the Related Art
Hitherto, this type of signal input device has been proposed, for example, as shown FIGS. 19 and 20. In this signal input device, a grip portion 101 of a joystick 100 has, on its peripheral surface, retractable projections 102 arranged in a dense 4 by 4 matrix, i.e., sixteen in total.
The projections 102 are disposed corresponding to portions 104, that is, the tip, middle, and base portions of the four fingers, excluding the thumb, and portions slightly close to the palm, of a hand 103 that grips the grip portion 101, as shown in FIG. 20. Although not shown, vibration means having piezoelectric elements are provided inside the projections 102, respectively, so as to individually vibrate the projections 102.
By gripping the grip portion 101 with the hand 103 and tilting the joystick 100 in a desired direction, a signal is output. Based on this output signal, a car-mounted device is operated, and the vibration means is also driven to transmit vibrations to the projections 102. This allows the driver to tactually know, through the hand 103, which of-the projections 102 is vibrating, and which car-mounted device is being presently operated.
It is difficult to operate the car-mounted device while driving a car, and to check the operation by watching a monitor display during driving. According to the above-described conventional device, the driver can tactually check the operation of the car-mounted device without watching the monitor display, and this ensures safe driving. The conventional device, however, also has some disadvantages.
That is, this joystick 100 needs a plurality of projections 102, a plurality of vibration means corresponding to the projections 102, control means for individually controlling the drives of the vibration means, and the like. This results in an increased number of components, complicated structure, large size, high cost, and troublesome assembly.
Since the size of the hand 103 for operating the joystick 100, that is, the positions of the portions 104 in FIG. 20, varies among individuals, differences arise in tactually sensing which projection 102 is vibrating, and this makes it impossible to properly check the operations of the car-mounted devices in a tactile manner.
Recent cars are equipped with a plurality of electronic devices, such as an air conditioner, a radio, a television, a CD player, and a navigation system. Since individual control of these electronic devices may hinder the driving of a car, a car-mounted input device has been proposed hitherto, in which all electronic devices can be controlled by operating a single manual operating section in order to easily turn on and off a desired electronic device, to select the function of the device, and to control the selected function, while maintaining safe driving.
FIGS. 21 to 26 show the configuration of a car-mounted input device as a second conventional art. FIG. 21 is an interior view of a car equipped with the car-mounted input device, FIG. 22 is a side view of the car-mounted input device, FIG. 23 is a plan view of a manual operating section included in the car-mounted input device, FIG. 24 is a plan view of a guide plate included in the car-mounted input device, FIG. 25 is a table showing the relationship between the engaging position of an engaging pin in a guide groove and the function to be selected, when an air conditioner is selected by a switch device, and FIG. 26 is a table showing the relationship between the engaging position of the engaging pin in the guide groove and the function to be selected, when a radio is selected by the switch device.
Referring to FIG. 21, a car-mounted input device 200 as the second conventional art is mounted in a console box 300 between a driver""s seat and a front passenger""s seat in the car.
As shown in FIGS. 22 to 24, the car-mounted input device 200 mainly comprises a manual operating section 210 including two click switches 211 and 212 and three rotary variable resistors 213, 214, and 215 that serve as signal input means; an X-Y table 220 to be driven in the X-direction and the Y-direction orthogonal to each other by the manual operating section 210; a stick controller 230 serving as a position signal input means that inputs a signal in accordance with the direction and amount of movement of the X-Y table 220; and a guide plate 240 engaged with the manual operating section 210 via the X-Y table 220.
The manual operating section 210 and the X-Y table 220 are connected via a connecting shaft 250, and the X-Y table 220 and the guide plate 240 are connected by movably fitting the leading end of an engaging pin 260, which projects from the lower surface of the X-Y table 220, in a guide groove 241 cut in the upper surface of the guide plate 240. The guide groove 241 is, as shown in FIG. 24, constituted by three longitudinal grooves 241a, 241b, and 241a arranged at regular intervals, and a transverse groove 241d for connecting the centers of these three longitudinal grooves 241a, 241b, and 241c. The grooves 241a to 241d have such a width that the engaging pin 260 can move only in the longitudinal directions thereof. Therefore, the manual operating section 210 and the X-Y table 220 can move only in the X-direction (the lengthwise direction of the transverse groove 241d) and the Y-direction (the lengthwise direction of the longitudinal grooves 241a to 241a) within the pattern and the size of the guide groove 241.
The functions of car-mounted electronic devices can be switched by moving the engaging pin 260 to any-of the ends and centers A to I of the longitudinal grooves 241a, 241b, and 241a shown in FIG. 24, and operating one of the two click switches 211 and 212 in the manual operating section 210. That is, this causes the stick controller 230 to output position information about the position of engagement between the engaging pin 260 and the guide groove 241 which is selected by operating the manual operating section 210 and the X-Y table 220, and therefore, it is possible to select the function of the car-mounted electronic devices based on the position signal.
The function of the electronic device, which is selected by operating the manual operating section 210 and the click switch 211 or 212, can be controlled by operating any of the three rotary variable resistors 213, 214, and 215 provided in the manual operating section 210.
The car-mounted input device 200 having the above-described configuration centrally controls a plurality of car-mounted electronic devices, in combination with a switch device for alternatively selecting desired one from the electronic devices, a display device for displaying the name of the electronic device selected by the switch device, and details of operations of the car-mounted input device 200, and a computer for controlling these devices.
As shown in FIG. 21, a switch device 270 including a combination of a plurality of (five in FIG. 21) switches 271 a to 271 e is provided near the car-mounted input device 200 in the console box 300, and a display device 280, such as a liquid crystal display device, is. provided in a portion. of the console box 300 that can be easily seen from the driver""s seat. Since a computer is placed inside the console box 300, the illustration thereof is omitted.
The switches 271a to 271e in the switch device 270 are connected to the car-mounted electronic devices, respectively. For example, when it is assumed that the switches 271a, 271b, 271c, 271d, and 271e are respectively connected to an air conditioner, a radio, a television, a CD player, and a navigation system mounted in the car, the air conditioner can be alternatively selected by operating the switch 271a, and the radio can be alternatively selected by operating the switch 271b. This also applies to the other electronic devices. Therefore, it is possible to power a desired electronic device on or off by operating one of the switches 271a to 271e in the switch device 270.
The functions of the electronic device selected by the switch device 270 can be selected and controlled by operating the car-mounted input device 200. The functions to be selected by the car-mounted input device 200 vary according to the kind of the selected electronic device. For example, when the air conditioner is selected by the switch device 270, the engaging positions A to I of the engaging pin 260 in the guide groove 241 shown in FIG. 24 and the functions to be selected have a relationship shown in FIG. 25. When the radio is selected by the switch device 270, the engaging positions A to I and the functions to be selected have the relationship shown in FIG. 26.
On the other hand, the functions to be controlled by. the car-mounted input device 200 vary according to the kind and function of the selected electronic device. For example, when the air conditioner is selected by the switch device 270 and xe2x80x9cair volume controlxe2x80x9d is selected by the manual operating section 210, the volume of air from the air conditioner can be controlled by operating the first rotary variable resistor 213. When the air conditioner is selected by the switch device 270 and xe2x80x9ctemperature controlxe2x80x9d is selected by the manual operating section 210, the set temperature of the air conditioner can be controlled by operating the second rotary variable resistor 214. In contrast, when the radio is selected by the switch device 270 and the xe2x80x9cvolume controlxe2x80x9d is selected by the manual operating section 210, the sound volume of the radio can be controlled by operating the first rotary variable resistor 213. When the radio is selected by the switch device 270 and xe2x80x9ctuningxe2x80x9d is selected by the manual operating section 210, the radio can be tuned by operating the second variable resistor 214.
Since the car-mounted input device 200 is operated even during driving of the car, it is preferable, for the purpose of safe driving and convenient use, to tactually confirm whether the manual operating section 210 has been switched to the position corresponding to a desired function.
Since the car-mounted input device 200 does not have such capabilities, however, the operating position of the manual operating section 210 or the display on the display device 280 must be visually checked.
The present invention has been made to solve the above-described problems of the conventional arts, and it is accordingly an object of the present invention to provide a signal input device, in which the operation performed by an operating section can be tactually grasped with precision, and which achieves a small number of components, simple structure, small size, reduced cost, simple assembly, and high operability.
In order to achieve the above object, according to an aspect of the present invention, there is provided a signal input device-including a movable operating section for inputting a desired signal by selecting the shift position thereof, a shift position detecting means (e.g., a membrane switch) for detecting the shift position of the operating section, an indication means (e.g., a vibration means such as a solenoid, or a sound producing means such as a speaker) for giving information in different modes (e.g., different vibration or sound modes) to an operator based on a shift position signal from the shift position detecting means.
The operating section, such as a grip portion of a control lever, may have a plurality of vibrations means, e.g., piezoelectric vibrators, and the time-varying vibration point shift mode produced by the plurality of vibration means varies depending on the shift position of the operating section.
Since the indication means can produce information, such as different vibrations and sound modes, based on a tilting position signal that serves as a shift position signal of the operating section, it is satisfactory that at least one indication means is provided. This reduces the number of components, compared with the conventional arts, and thereby achieves simple structure, small size, low cost, and simple assembly.
The indication means does not respond to the tip or middle portion of a finger, as is different from the conventional arts, and, for example, vibrates the entire grip portion of the control lever serving as the operating section. Therefore, it is possible to precisely grasp the operation performed by the operating sections regardless of the size of the hand.
According to another aspect of the present invention, there is provided a car-mounted input device including a manual operating section having one or more signal input means, a position signal input means for inputting a signal in accordance with the position of the manual operating section, a guide means for limiting the moving range of the manual operating section and an X-Y table, and a vibration means disposed inside the manual operating section so as to produce vibrations in the mode that varies depending on the operating position of the manual operating section with respect to the guide means.
When an engaging pin is positioned at any point in a guide groove formed in the guide means by operating the manual operating section, and a click switch provided in the manual operating section is operated, a position signal in accordance with the engaging position of the guide groove and the engaging pin is input from the position signal input means, such as a stick controller, to a control section. The control section outputs a drive signal for the vibration means in response to the input position signal, thereby vibrating the vibration means in the mode in accordance with the drive signal.
Since the vibration means is thus provided inside the manual operating section so as to produce vibrations in the mode that varies depending on the operating position of the manual operating section, the driver can tactually determine whether the operating position of the manual operating section coincides with a desired position, based on the difference of the mode of vibrations transmitted to the hand via a casing of the manual operating section. This further improves operability and convenience of use of the car-mounted input device.
Further objects, features, and advantages of the present invention will become apparent from the following description of the preferred embodiments with reference to the attached drawings.